Do you remember what Matt Cutts has repeatedly said? It’s useful and quality content which is the key to success as far as Google rankings are concerned. Similarly, Duane Forrester from Bing said, “All SEO ranking signals revolve around content of some kind.” This is the reason quality SEO content is the need of the hour, especially after Google’s Hummingbird update.
When it comes to search engine optimization, there are multiple factors that help your website attract audience. Search terms/keywords, pictures, videos and infographics help your online business with increased number of page views, clicks, and conversions – but all these elements cannot match the power of written words on your website or blog.
The words on your company’s website help search engines rank your site in the SERPs, and the most important aspect is that they tell internet users what to do, thus providing them with loads of useful information in the process.
What Marketers Are Saying?
The fact that quality SEO content writing helps websites rank higher in the SERPs has also been vouched for by many marketers. Let’s have a look at what they said:
- 92 percent marketers say that quality and meaningful content is effective for search engine rankings.
- 50 percent of them say that website content is very effective for search engine optimization.
- 40 percent of marketers say that white papers not only help with SEO but businesses can build authority on a particular niche.
Why Content is King and Will Remain So?
There are genuine reasons why content is considered the king in terms of SEO. Be it Google, Bing or Yahoo, these search engines look for particular aspects of websites so that visitors can be directed to the most useful, pertinent and updated information.
Web pages and blogs are crawled or indexed on a regular basis by the leading search engines to determine a host of factors. These include:
- Is the information original or copied?
- The number of words on the web pages
- Are the keywords used relevant to the nature of the business?
- What exact words you have used?
Web based programs popularly known as ‘bots’ crawl web pages. These bots search all of the online content in sweeping waves on a regular basis. The bots collate the information related to the content and help search engines ascertain how to distribute the information to the visitors. Let’s cite an example to explain this point better. Say for instance, a user enters the search term ‘gardening equipment’, and Google displays gardeningequipment.com as its first result in the SERPs. This is known as organic search.
Why Content is Social?
Content is not only useful for your business website and blog but also an integral part of social media. Let’s have a look at some of the facts:
- 27 million pieces of web based content are shared everyday via social sites
- According to Google, +1 helps with rankings.
- Bing makes use of Facebook likes. This is regarded as a ranking signal for users who are logged in.
- More the number of tweets, the better. That’s because it helps Google index content quickly.
- 60 percent of content-sharing messages related to any industry mention a product/brand by name.
Relevancy
The use of relevant keywords matters. Sometimes, marketers spoil the natural flow of information by stuffing articles or posts with keywords. This is done in the hope of getting a considerable amount of traffic.
You have an article on gardening equipment but in order to attract more traffic, you insert a very popular SEO keyword ‘iPhone’ in the content. This black hat strategy may get you more clicks for a short span of time but these visits will simply add no value to your online business. Your potential customers will be infuriated and frustrated because they will be unable to find the information they are looking for. Just imagine how you will feel if you are directed to an article on gardening equipment when you are actually searching for information related to the latest iPhone. This is unethical SEO and will be penalized by Google.
Google will reward only those sites having useful and relevant content with matching keywords. Your rank in the SERPs depends on how relevant the content and keywords are. When you use gardening equipment as a search term in the content, you may get fewer clicks but those clicks are from potential customers who show interest in your products. So, these clicks will convert into leads and probably sales.
Brand Story and Content
When you are investing in the branding of your business, the process should begin with the narration of a story that reaches your targeted customers. And, stories related to your products or services rely on engaging content.
Studies show that 50 percent of customers are likely to click on a search result if your brand name appears more than once in the results page of Google. And, this is possible only when you have fresh and unique content on your website or blog, thus establishing an authority in your niche business.
New and Original Information
Creating new and fresh SEO content requires time, brainstorming and research. When Google or any other search engine crawls through web pages, they have the ability to remember or catalog the first time and source from which the new content was produced. Now, if your website has nothing new or useful to offer to your readers, but only reprinted content, Google will mark you as a secondary source. Even if you are writing about an already discussed topic, you need to add value to the post by offering new insights and info that helps your site visitors.
Reprinted Content – Good or Bad?
If you have written a unique post on a topic – say about white space in website design – it means that you are the originator of the content. Other related sites reproduce what you have already written. If this happens; how does it affect you? Well, if it is reproduced on a regular basis, Google will give you the credit you deserve. That’s because you are showing the path and you will be rewarded with good rankings.
When others are using or sharing your content, it means that you have useful information for readers.
Content Converts Search and Visitors – Facts & Figures
Here are some facts and figures to prove that content converts search as well as visitors:
- 52 percent of online shoppers say that informative blogs have contributed to a considerable extent in influencing their buying decisions.
- Studies reveal that 42 percent of customers go through articles and blogs for finding information about new products/services.
- As many as 57 percent marketers acquired new customers through their website blogs.
- 60 percent of business decision architects opine that branded content had helped them make better and informed product decisions.
- 19 percent of shoppers looking for beauty products online have made their purchase based on blog articles they have found via search.
- 61 percent of customers are more prone to buying items from businesses offering tailored content.
By now, you have understood why SEO content plays a pivotal role in boosting the performance of your website. What is your take on this subject? Feel free to comment.
SBR Technologies 